Gig economy stories

Mastercard partners with Thunes to enable near-instant payouts to stablecoin wallets via Mastercard Move, enhancing global digital payment options.

By 2026, AI will revolutionise banking and insurance, with over half of younger adults using generative AI for financial advice, says Forrester report.

YY Group will use Obita’s stablecoin platform to enhance cross-border payments for its global gig workforce, boosting speed, security and inclusion.

SoloSecure certification launches to help freelancers defend against rising cyber threats, safeguarding their businesses and clients in the growing gig economy.

Ecommpay won the Special Judges Award at the Financial Services Forum 2025 for its innovative Payouts via Hosted Payment Page solution enhancing secure payments globally.

Zoho's ANZ customer base grows 20% with new AI-powered solutions including Zoho Solo and Zoho for Nonprofits, boosting regional impact and innovation.

INSHUR raises USD $35m from Trinity Capital to boost US expansion and develop AI-driven insurance for autonomous vehicle and on-demand mobility markets.

Generative AI is ushering in a creative renaissance, making filmmaking and art accessible to all and sparking new forms of collaborative storytelling.

Uber shifted NZD $200 million offshore through intercompany fees, causing New Zealand to lose an estimated NZD $56 million in tax revenue, a report claims.

The Government will create eight Industry Skills Boards, allocating creative and IT sectors like game development and AI to ISBs, not NZQA as initially planned.

INSHUR appoints Tal Brener as CFO and Mark Dennis as COO Europe to boost growth after hitting one million UK policies and 25 million Amazon Pay-as-you-Flex hours.

TAL and Cover Genius launch backd, a digital life and income protection insurance targeting underinsured young and gig economy workers in Australia.

Multiplier launches COR solution to simplify global contractor compliance, offering fast onboarding, region-specific contracts, and payments in 120+ currencies.

Jenny Welsh joins UniTaskr as Head of Growth and Strategy to spearhead global expansion and promote diversity in the student work platform sector.

Intuit QuickBooks launches AI tool to simplify digital income tax compliance for nearly two million UK self-assessment filers ahead of MTD rollout.

Australia's workforce grew 22.9% since 2014, with dramatic rises in aged care and tech roles, while traditional jobs like travel agents and farmers declined.

London's night economy flourishes as retail jobs remain 5% down since the pandemic, with hospitality seeing a 2% annual increase in employment.

Marqeta's leaders predict fintech in 2025 will focus on hyper-personalisation, digitalisation, and proactive compliance to meet evolving consumer demands.

Humanforce has acquired Australian HR tech firm LiveHire for USD $17.2 million, marking its fourth acquisition in two years to enhance workforce solutions.

From 1 January 2025, wage theft will be criminalised in Australia, with penalties up to AUD $7.8 million for companies and up to ten years' imprisonment for individuals.